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Terrible Applecare experience with iMac

This is just terrible.

When I bought my new MBP just last month the sales rep told me to get apple care and she told me that for three years they will guarantee to keep my MBP working perfectly and that if they couldn't fix it they will replace it.

I should have asked the rep to put that promise into writing.
 
What a fiasco. OP, are there any other AppleStores near you or is this it? I personally would hate to have to deal with these clowns again, although I guess you're now kinda stuck dealing with them this late in the process. But they're obviously unwilling or incapable (maybe both?) of dealing with this. It's a shame as they're giving Apple a bad name.

I would be typing up a very detailed and eloquent letter right about now to send to Apple. :cool:
 
I feel sorry for you man. This service is beyond unacceptable. I'd honestly never buy another Apple product if that happened to me.

From a guy that's been on the inside, Apple's retail experience has always varied from store to store in terms of quality, but it seems they're getting more and more inconsistent with the services they offer.
 
I noticed that from many posts in this forum one can infer that Applecare outside USA (especially here in Europe, except maybe UK) is a lot worse than IN USA ... I'm wondering if is it worth to invest so many euros for a service which is not gonna be what you'd expect : the only Apple Store near my place is at least 50 km away and it's not reachable by car (as it is downtown where private cars are not allowed) ... I've been there a couple of times and even called them to ask news about upcoming products : every time I had the bad feeling I was much more informed than the geniuses that (poorly) answered me ...
 
Wow,terrible story.
You should write a letter detailing your story to Apple customer support.
Hope everything works out for you.
 
docx said:
Wow,terrible story.
You should write a letter detailing your story to Apple customer support.
Hope everything works out for you.
Click to expand...

Definitely this....a hard copy letter, to Tim Cook, sent certified with return receipt. Obviously, he won't sign for it, but a hand-written letter sent to the top gets action in my experience...I've had to resort to it twice, once for a Sharp TV and once for a pair of Columbia boots. Both times I got phone calls from executive relations, aplogies, and new replacements - free.
 
Applecare is ****, I dont know how people still fall for this, Apple is evil

Demand a new computer always
 
Another update.
Got a call today from apple.

They are finally deciding to replace the imac.. They couldn't track down the issue with the fans and replacing the necessary parts would cost them too much So they decided to do them selves a favour and replace the computer as it would be cheaper..

Nice to know they had my best interests in mind........**sarcasm**

Now to just wait another 7-10 days for them to order another one as mine was an upgraded built to order iMac.

The store has yet to even apologize about this whole situation. :confused:

Next thing on the list: Call up the apple customer relations person and update him, and start the process of refunding my remaining applecare.

Oh, and on that note, would this replacement iMac have a new 1yr warranty? Or do they just completely replace it with my current applecare coverage?
 
Sounds like a bad location ....

A little more than a year ago I took an iMac in for a failing HDD.

Came out with the iMac and told me they replaced the Mainboard, HDD and panel.

It worked flawlessly, but looking it over I notice a small nick in the aluminum housing.

The genius called over the manager and they agreed it must have been damaged there. They told me to take the iMac home and they would be in touch.

A week later they call telling me to bring the iMac back in.

Got there and they asked if I wanted to wait. About 90 minutes later they call me back to the Apple Store.

They replaced the housing .... either that or they gave me a new iMac.
 
ixodes said:
For a very long time, I've been a staunch supporter of AppleCare & the Genius Bar. Yet lately I'm rethinking my position. Not only because of stories like yours, but the experience my friends have had over the last year.

I have no idea of why, nor do I care. It's Apples problem to solve.

Yet, I wonder if they will. It's a new era at Apple. One that's far different than the Apple of the past.

I've let some of these stories slide, not taking them very seriously. But it's time to re-frame how I perceive what seems to be their decline in service operations.

How very discouraging. Apple is capable of far better. They charge premium pricing, yet are not always providing premium services.
Click to expand...

What kind of stories? I think I went into the Genius bar around 2003 or 2004 with my notebook at the time. The genius at that time knew unix commands. In more recent years these guys seem stumped whenever it's a slightly atypical question.
 
You lost me at "after a month".

I've never heard of an in warranty taking more than 7 days. And those situations are usually part availability related.

I call bs or at least extreme exaggeration as a result of frustration.
 
thekev said:
What kind of stories?
Click to expand...
I work with a lot of Mac enthusiasts, at least 25 or 30. Apples being as good as they were until the last year or so, didn't have to be taken in often.

In the recent 18 months or so, that's changed. The MBP's that have had problems haven't been turned around in the typical 5 to 7 day time frame. Then once returned not all have been correctly repaired to resolve the problem.

While this is understandable once in a while, in the 18 month period, five have had to be redone after the first attempt. That's not something that would happen before the iDevice era.
 
wow this store seems horrible and they have techs who arent trained in customer service or anything it appears! Would giving you a new replacement had hurt them that bad? for all you know that imac prob wasnt even yours could have been handing off someone elses lemon to you. just sad
 
I know I'm going to sound like a fanboy but I think it was just as much your fault as the apple store.

I've been to 2 or 3 stores in my area and literally never had a problem with anything. I know it will vary store by store, but I work in the restaurant business, and you just seem like the type of customer I wouldn't like.

I mean when you leave a computer in their hands, with anywhere really, isn't it just kind of assumed they obviously aren't going to take any responsibilities if anything is broken? I mean dust in the screen, unless the stuff was layers and layers deep, I don't really see the big deal, theres dust on my Macbook Air screen right now.

I understand your frustrations but coming from someone who handles peoples food for a living, be nice to us.

Instead of raising 9 kinds of hell, just say something like "Hey its cool man, stuff happens" and I promise they will make it easier on you.
 
ixodes said:
I work with a lot of Mac enthusiasts, at least 25 or 30. Apples being as good as they were until the last year or so, didn't have to be taken in often.

In the recent 18 months or so, that's changed. The MBP's that have had problems haven't been turned around in the typical 5 to 7 day time frame. Then once returned not all have been correctly repaired to resolve the problem.

While this is understandable once in a while, in the 18 month period, five have had to be redone after the first attempt. That's not something that would happen before the iDevice era.
Click to expand...

That makes me sad. I haven't had to send anything in for repairs in some time. The last things have all been outside of warranty:mad:. Now I just hope I don't have to send any computers in. I will say that if I could get everything to run on Debian, I would totally switch:p, although Fedora is certified for more stuff.

GKDAIR said:
I know I'm going to sound like a fanboy but I think it was just as much your fault as the apple store.

I've been to 2 or 3 stores in my area and literally never had a problem with anything. I know it will vary store by store, but I work in the restaurant business, and you just seem like the type of customer I wouldn't like.

I mean when you leave a computer in their hands, with anywhere really, isn't it just kind of assumed they obviously aren't going to take any responsibilities if anything is broken? I mean dust in the screen, unless the stuff was layers and layers deep, I don't really see the big deal, theres dust on my Macbook Air screen right now.
Click to expand...

This is completely misinformation. They don't cover data loss. This is typical. They do have a limitation of liability. None of it is implicit. It's spelled out just like you would find with any other large corporation. Regarding things like dust, it's normal to take precautions against dust and static electricity when repairing electronics. This is just normal stuff. Please do not contribute garbage to the thread. In case you don't want to take my word, I've posted their disclaimer.

http://www.apple.com/legal/applecare/acrapac.html

5. Limitation of Liability
TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, APPLE'S LIABILITY UNDER THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS
IS LIMITED TO THE AMOUNTS PAID BY YOU FOR THE SERVICE PLAN YOU ORDERED. IN NO
EVENT SHALL APPLE HAVE ANY LIABILITY FOR ANY INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL OR
CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO DAMAGES FOR LOST PROFITS,
LOSS OF DATA, LOSS OF USE OF EQUIPMENT OR FACILITIES, INTERRUPTION OF BUSINESS OR
FAILURE TO MAINTAIN THE CONFIDENTIALITY OF DATA ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THESE
TERMS AND CONDITIONS UNDER ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER OR NOT APPLE HAS
BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE. APPLE SPECIFICALLY DOES NOT
WARRANT THAT IT WILL BE ABLE TO (i) REPAIR OR REPLACE COVERED EQUIPMENT WITHOUT
RISK TO OR LOSS OF PROGRAMS OR DATA, AND (ii) MAINTAIN THE CONFIDENTIALITY OF DATA.
IF YOU ARE COVERED BY CONSUMER PROTECTION LAWS OR REGULATIONS IN YOUR COUNTRY
OF PURCHASE OR, IF DIFFERENT, YOUR COUNTRY OF RESIDENCE, THE BENEFITS CONFERRED BY
THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS ARE IN ADDITION TO ALL RIGHTS AND REMEDIES CONVEYED
BY SUCH CONSUMER PROTECTION LAWS AND REGULATIONS. SOME COUNTRIES, STATES AND
PROVINCES DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF INCIDENTAL OR
CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OR EXCLUSIONS OR LIMITATIONS ON IMPLIED WARRANTIES OR
CONDITIONS, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. THESE
TERMS AND CONDITIONS GIVE YOU SPECIFIC LEGAL RIGHTS, AND YOU MAY ALSO HAVE OTHER
RIGHTS THAT VARY BY COUNTRY, STATE OR PROVINCE.
Click to expand...
 
GKDAIR said:
I know I'm going to sound like a fanboy but I think it was just as much your fault as the apple store.

I've been to 2 or 3 stores in my area and literally never had a problem with anything. I know it will vary store by store, but I work in the restaurant business, and you just seem like the type of customer I wouldn't like.

I mean when you leave a computer in their hands, with anywhere really, isn't it just kind of assumed they obviously aren't going to take any responsibilities if anything is broken? I mean dust in the screen, unless the stuff was layers and layers deep, I don't really see the big deal, theres dust on my Macbook Air screen right now.

I understand your frustrations but coming from someone who handles peoples food for a living, be nice to us.

Instead of raising 9 kinds of hell, just say something like "Hey its cool man, stuff happens" and I promise they will make it easier on you.
Click to expand...

You just seem like the type of merchant I wouldn't like.
 
GKDAIR said:
I know I'm going to sound like a fanboy
Click to expand...

Yep. You did a great job of that. Saying it's his fault because he should expect the Apple store not to take responsibility for damage they caused, when he paid a premium price for the hardware AND an additional fee for premium coverage after that, is beyond fanboy. It's delusional.

This is an awful story, with no excuses being justified for the shoddy treatment he received. I'm just glad that my local Apple Store (Sapporo, Japan) has always been first rate with their service and the one occasion I had a hardware problem, they had it fixed the same day.
 
GKDAIR said:
I know I'm going to sound like a fanboy but I think it was just as much your fault as the apple store.

I've been to 2 or 3 stores in my area and literally never had a problem with anything. I know it will vary store by store, but I work in the restaurant business, and you just seem like the type of customer I wouldn't like.

I mean when you leave a computer in their hands, with anywhere really, isn't it just kind of assumed they obviously aren't going to take any responsibilities if anything is broken? I mean dust in the screen, unless the stuff was layers and layers deep, I don't really see the big deal, theres dust on my Macbook Air screen right now.

I understand your frustrations but coming from someone who handles peoples food for a living, be nice to us.

Instead of raising 9 kinds of hell, just say something like "Hey its cool man, stuff happens" and I promise they will make it easier on you.
Click to expand...


what you've said has summed up everything that is wrong with many retail outlets today....the attitude of 'i dont give a damn as there is another customer behind you who will give me money anyway'.

this stems from the idiot 'saturday kids' who are employed and have no interest or customer service skills right down to the owner who is out to screw as much out of a customer and do as little as possible.....we pay a lot of money for apple products, we expect a better service....else why not go and buy crap like dell for half the price and expect to be treated like dirt?
 
Wow I should be a 'genius', I took the screen out of my 27" iMac on my bed last week and managed to put it back in without getting any dust in it. In fact I vaccumed inside so there's a lot LESS dust than to start with!
 
I had a similar situation but it went quicker, probably because I have a voice that carries. I had one of the iMacs that had a HDD that "might" fail and Apple offered to replace it proactively.

I took it in and when I went to pick up, there was dust under the glass and a scratch to the frame and the side of the glass. They either pried the glass off or smashed the edge into a shelf or something while moving it around. They told me they could fix it... I asked them how they were going to fix an aluminum unibody. They said that's just trim, they can order that as a part so I left the iMac with them.

They called me back and said, its not trim (no ****) and that they'd have to move the entire guts of my iMac into a new body to fix it. I came into the store and they sent me home with a new one. Took about two weeks total to walk through all this.

I actually wish Apple would make a "Mac Midi" as this experience really turned me off to the AIO design.
 
All you have to do is send email with details to tim cook - i had troubles with wifi issues on my imac, send mail to tim, next day i was contacted by apple support and everything was great - with such a serious incompetence you have met, tim should get memo - he will care.
 
This is NOT an Apple Care problem.

It is a problem with one Apple Store.

If it were me, I'd still buy Apple Care but stay the hell out of THAT STORE !

----------
imahawki said:
I actually wish Apple would make a "Mac Midi" as this experience really turned me off to the AIO design.
Click to expand...

Here again more BS.

I don't care of you have a Mac Pro, Mac Mini, Macbook Pro, iPod, iPad, iPhone or even an iMac.

All of them can be damaged by the repair shops.

I know because when I took a Power Mac in for repair they ended up having to order a cable because they broke the connector on the one in the computer in the process of repair.


If you really find the need to bash the AIO design, at least show some creativity and come up with a valid reason! ;)



.
 
I never said it was entirely his fault or apples fault. Just people taking my words out of context.

Obviously the apple store should have handled your product better, but guess what if you are a dick and a jerk to them, they will screw up your device even more and blame it on you. That happens anywhere in retail, and being perfectly honest you seem like the guy that if an icon was moved a slight inch to the left you would complain out it.
 
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